Corrupt Echoes of a Hunter's Past
by Purple Pork Penguin
Summary: AU, but not an Aurora Unit. Throughout Samus's career, she had encountered creatures of massive sizes, loud volume, and eerie appearances. When they encounter each other through some unexpected circumstances, they learn they're not all at the top of the food chain. Craziness and a self-destruct sequence follow, but it's all in a day's work for a bounty hunter.
1. Awakening

Ch. 1 Awakened

Author's Note:

The first time I published this, I accidentally posted the whole rough draft as the first chapter. Hopefully, that issue has been fixed. Anyways, this is my first story on Fanfiction. Please keep all reviews free from inappropriate language.

Disclaimer: Metroid and all respective characters belong to Nintendo.

Mother Brain was destroyed.

There was no debate. Samus had reduced her to ash, even before the planet burst.

Yet Mother Brain stirred.

The Space Pirates, under her telepathic focus, had constructed a backup, to be used for future operations. It was not meant to replace Mother Brain in case of failure (how could anyone hope to defeat the hulking monstrosity Mother Brain had become?), but it was an organic supercomputer duplicate.

Thus, after the absence of Space Pirate activity for months, Mother Brain 3, or the Tertiary Brain, stirred.

An eye opened, and narrowed.

* * *

Gorea had been finished.

Blast after blast from the omega cannon had devastated its defenses, and its form shattered. Shortly afterwards, the Oubliette detonated (a pattern, anyone?).

Did it cross anyone's minds, however, that Gorea wasn't the last of its kind?

(Any resemblance to a superhero story can be disregarded).

A smear of shadow flickered through space.

Elcnax was coming, and its thirst for power was fixated on the approaching, scintillating orb of a planet ripe for ravaging.

The Ing were gone.

Dark Aether vanished with a speed like that which it had appeared. Those inside were rent asunder by the fragmenting dimension.

But just as those from Aether could wander the violent wastes with protection, those from the dark twin could survive in the light.

Dark Pirate Commandos, dark splinters, and dark war wasps, hidden from the Luminoth's careful eyes, waited.

They waited for ships with which they could spread across the cosmos as shades of doom.

* * *

The X-parasites and the SA-X were scattered atoms in the wake of the antimatter detonation.

They stayed as scattered atoms, because this story isn't in the angst or horror genres.

Moving on…

Wait. Here we go: Some of the parts of Samus's suit were secretly brought to another station. They were extremely small, giving the X little to work with.

Let's call the location the Jug ship, as bottles are too common.

Now then, moving on…

* * *

To say Dark Samus was Phazon would be inaccurate, if only slightly.

Nonetheless, the destruction of all Phazon in the universe was kind of an inconvenience to her.

Kind of.

Despite this, moments before Phaaze turned into a smear of nothingness, Dark Samus reformed in the cargo bay of a retreating Galactic Federation ship.

Through the agony of having all of her Phazon purged, she managed to escape the vessel, drifting off in space.

Her power diminished and her mind scrambled, she floated.

Space is a harsh environment. Generally, one requires a space suit to survive in it. Alternatively, one could be a Metroid.

Conveniently, Dark Samus fulfilled both conditions.

As it was, her energy reserves were empty, making her Metroid self very hungry.

Thus, she floated, adrift, until someone or something had the displeasure of bumping into her.

Well, a lot of time did pass from Corruption to Fusion, so…

* * *

Ridley was dead.

Samus would have bought cake, had it not been for her personality and the nature of the surrounding events.

Not to mention, she would be eating a lot of cake if she celebrated every time she thought she had put him away.

Still, the Galactic Federation did have his DNA, along with Metroid DNA.

If they were surprised when the Queen Metroid and raving mad dragon escaped, they were possibly even dumber than Samus suspected.

* * *

MB had been shot.

Multiple times, in fact.

Still, she was an android, or a cyborg (it's hard to tell), so the Galactic Federation was able to repair her in a clandestine operation.

Of course, she kept her recovering mental faculties hidden, pretending to remain unresponsive.

In the night, she broke out.

The Government of the Year award was not presented to the Galactic Federation.

* * *

Samus, when she wasn't busy kicking Ganondorf and Bowser around like soccer balls in a certain cross-universal game, liked staring at stars.

She also enjoyed going into a monologue, but it's probably a nice thing that she didn't get too excited after blowing through alien monsters like glass sculptures.

As she prepared to fly her ship, the readers can be left with one question.

How many planets do you think she'll go through this time?


	2. Game Start

Ch.2 Game Start

 **Author's Note:** While the story's rough draft is completed, the remaining chapters are still undergoing revision.

Again, please keep all reviews clean.

 **Disclaimer:** Metroid belongs to Nintendo.

* * *

Samus landed on the outskirts of a research facility, muttering something about a change in environment for once.

The distress signal was audible as Samus walked through the front entrance. Realizing that she might want to hurry, she broke into a sprint, breaking the sound barrier after a few moments.

She entered a large room and thought _boss room_ just as the doors locked for whatever reason.

Green eyes glowed as a Ridley clone appeared, and Samus said nonchalantly, "Deja Bantha puuduuvu."

Another pair of green eyes appeared. 28 more appeared after that, and Samus actually quirked a brow.

The dragons lunged, only to swipe at empty air. Samus landed on the ground from her back flip in time to discharge three light-blue bolts of freezing plasma.

They went through multiple Ridleys, all of which made shrieking noises reminiscent of doomed chickens.

More bolts followed, but the rest of the scene might be better left unwritten.

* * *

A Queen Metroid and her offspring were next on Samus's to-do list.

Power bomb, plus power bomb, plus power bomb.

Check.

* * *

As Samus approached her ship, a giant space ghost appeared, making a sound vaguely like "Boooooo."

Samus proceeded to Screw Attack through the three rage hands, and continued to somersault into his eye with the space jump until he detonated.

In the vast regions of space, an Aurora unit commented on a brainwave like the distant twinkle of a star, which reached two different MB's, sounding vaguely like "Stupid 2D game mechanics" before trailing off into a ghostly howl.

* * *

As Samus wrapped up her day, she called out, "Adam?"

"Your agenda for today seems to be completed," the computer replied. "Any objections, Lady?"

She frowned. "Yes, actually. File a lawsuit against the Galactic Federation for reckless endangerment."

The computer blinked owlishly, then asked, "Anything else?"

Samus paused, then nodded. "Open all their social media posts."

"What do you want me to do with them?" the computer asked, puzzled.

Samus grinned. "Give them all a thumbs down."


	3. Villain Social Issues

Ch. 3 Villain Social Issues

 **Author's Note:** While the story's rough draft is completed, the remaining chapters are still undergoing revision.

Again, please keep all reviews clean.

 **Disclaimer:** Metroid belongs to Nintendo.

* * *

The Delano 7 was cruising when it hit a blue object.

Said blue object awoke and clung to the ship as Sylux wondered at the impact. He slowed, only for Dark Samus to tear out a hatch and enter.

(Such a scene is statistically unreasonable, but sacrifices must be made for the sake of the plot!)

As they argued about whose ship it was, they, to the envy of Stormtroopers, managed to also collide with a dark comet plummeting towards a planet.

When the comet, Gorea #2, also known as Elcnax, took offense, it was too late, and they entered the atmosphere. Landing in an ocean, they came to a stop nearby a coastline, with Elcnax ending up further down the coast.

Sylux, in the confusion, took off in his ship without Dark Samus, freaking out about the doppelgangers of two of his most terrifying foes.

Dark Samus proceeded to consume the nearby fauna in a rather Metroid-like fashion. As she rebuilt her energy stores, she noticed a commotion nearby. Hovering towards it, she was slightly curious at the ruckus.

Elcnax, having landed by a Space Pirate base, was busy assimilating their technology and feeding off their minds. Turning towards Dark Samus, it hesitated.

In the past, a short telepathic transmission from Gorea revealed the circumstances of its demise. Included were images of a certain armor clad hunter, who was in orange at the time. Still…

In a flash, Elcnax unleashed a volley of elemental pulses at Dark Samus. Growling, the dark doppelganger flipped away. Spotting the nearby Space Pirates, she assimilated their weaponry as well.

As the two clashed in the base, they blasted open a nearby wall. A roar resounded from within, but the two combatants paid little notice.

When a horde of zoomers, geemers, kihunters, and sidehoppers charged them, they grew a little annoyed.

When the tertiary Mother Brain came out, walking on two legs and drooling, they became slightly surprised.

A fiery orange pulse smashed Dark Samus aside. Gorea scorched Mother Brain with a series of Space Pirate wave beams. Mother Brain retaliated in kind, and Dark Samus rejoined the fray.

The Tertiary Brain, realizing it was on the losing side of the overwhelming fire power contest, activated a self-destruct mechanism for the area. It stomped over to a custom shuttle and blasted off.

Dark Samus followed in a Space Pirate fighter, with Elcnax following suit while shouting, "Chickens!" telepathically.

Unfortunately, they all managed to crash land on a cloaked Galactic Federation Space Station resembling a jug.

* * *

Meanwhile, stereotypical dumb Federation scientists landed on planet Aether to "observe" some technology.

When their space ships blasted off with a full cargo of Ing specimens, the scientists were left to awkwardly explain to the Luminoth what they were doing.

The autopilot sent the ships on a course with a certain space station.

* * *

MB sent her ship on a course with a space station known to contain Metroid DNA, plans already in motion.

Considering the dramatic irony at work, the plans aren't too important right now, so…

* * *

Samus, in an effort to relieve her boredom, followed a distress signal called "Toddler's whining" or something.

"I wonder if I'll see any Komaytos there?" she murmured, leaving Adam to blink like a giant centipede in the caverns of Zebes.

"Maybe one of my old bosses will have a cameo too!" Samus pondered.

Adam went into sleep mode to conserve his sanity.


	4. Food Chain (Chomps)

Ch.4 Food Chain (chomps)

 **Author's Note:** I was rather embarrassed to realize I had missed the typo on the previous title.

Anyways, I find it interesting that the SA-X, while possibly the greatest (and creepiest) threat in the Metroid Series, has the worst match ups with the other threats. Still, no spoilers.

Again, please keep all reviews clean.

 **Disclaimer:** Metroid is the property of Nintendo.

* * *

As swarms of evacuation shuttles fled the station, Dark Samus, Elcnax, and Tertiary Brain were hunting.

Specifically, Dark Samus was hunting for anyone, Elcnax was hunting for Dark Samus, and Tertiary Brain was hunting for Metroids.

The walking brain found them and promptly inserted its telepathic control over them, as well as the surrounding specimens.

Connecting with the security network, it watched its two opponents meander around. Curiously, it noted several ships docking in various locations. What appeared to be a female human went to the lab. Several shady looking Space Pirates explored with their assortment of companions. Samus Aran docked and walked out in her familiar colors.

Tertiary Brain paused for an entire span of three seconds, processing this data. She promptly powered off the Wii U and restarted the file.

Just kidding.

In the next moment, the door opened to the Metroid chamber. Tertiary Brain looked down, and groaned.

Three SA-X's armed super missiles and fired.

* * *

Dark Samus spotted an SA-X approaching. Thinking of her former nemesis, she promptly engaged it in combat.

Surprised at the ineffectiveness of her basic shots, she switched to the plasma beam technology she had acquired. The pulses appeared to be more effective, but her opponent's triple ice beam shots were aggravating her.

Several shinespark-esque attacks later, the SA-X switched to its Hornoad mutant form.

Dark Samus, feeling something was up with Samus apparently being a shapeshifter, blasted it with plasma. When plasma failed to work on the blue core thing, she used missiles.

The SA-X, thinking it could snatch a powerful target, lunged for Dark Samus in its blue form. Several seconds of Metroid DNA working, and the SA-X immediately regretted its decision.

Oops.

* * *

Elcnax had a similar moment with an SA-X. After wearing it down, it frowned at the blue form.

Surprising for the X parasites, Metroids weren't the only life energy sappers…

* * *

A swarm of X-parasites made their way to Melissa Bergman.

A swarm of Metroids made their way to Melissa Bergman.

The X-parasites couldn't get a break today, could they?

* * *

Samus's charged ice beam froze over five SA-X's. Another pulse followed, with the plasma tearing through their armor.

So fared any SA-X who challenged Samus, their own Varia suits unsuited for the freezing effects of the combination.

* * *

A sweeping blast of energy finished off the solid forms of the SA-X's in Tertiary Brain's room.

Monitoring the station, the Brain knew how to finish them. Calling in its Metroids, it had them consumed.

Thus, X-parasites make tasty snacks. Who knew?


	5. Fight!

Ch. 5 Round 4: Fight!

 **Author's Note:** I find it somewhat strange that there are quite a few copycat characters in Metroid, though it's more of a Nintendo feature. Anyways I'd like to say that I'm hoping for another Metroid Smash character, with Sylux, U-mos, or Melissa Bergman being my preferred choices.

Again, please keep all reviews clean.

 **Disclaimer:** Metroid is the property of Nintendo, as is Super Smash Bros.

* * *

The Ing fled from Dark Samus. By her lay the forms of several darklings foolish enough to challenge her.

A blast of incinerating energy eliminated the fleeing group. Samus approached her doppelganger, arm cannon readied.

Samus murmured to herself, "As I approached the disgusting creature, I wondered if it, too, remembered our long a colorful history which I could ramble on for several pages of this story."

Dark Samus, being true to form, fired first. Samus leapt away, unleashing a pulsing blue blast of plasma.

Missiles were fired, screw attack met energy shield, and the two Metroid-Samus-Power Suit hybrids continued their duel.

Eventually, Samus, being Samus, won over her dark ditto. Scooping up the remains of Dark Samus's particles in a jar, she shipped it off to Super Smash Bros, where Dark Samus would be a constant nuisance to other people, not just Samus.

* * *

Another copycat battle was waged, as Melissa Bergman sent her Metroid horde against Mother Brain.

To the Tertiary Brain's irritation, her telepathic control over her own forces was being contested. In addition, she couldn't seem to control her opponent's smaller but more dedicated force.

Eventually, Mother Brain's forces were defeated, with Melissa's advancing to Mother Brain's chamber.

In an epic battle, with all of the Metroids not needing to protect their respective blond, they gobbled up Tertiary Brain.

Brain food, anyone?

* * *

Elcnax was puzzled by the shadowy horde that surrounded it.

Then it gave its equivalent of a shrug and started annihilating them.

The Pirate Commandos' phasing tricks couldn't fool Elcnax's telepathic sense. The shapeshifter lit them up with a narrow beam of fiery plasma.

The bugs were bugs. They were swatted, fried, and burned.

In a desperate move, the remaining Ing forces departed from their hosts and attempted to control Elcnax.

They did not pass their final exam, though it was with flying colors.

* * *

Samus passed by the ruined Tertiary Brain chamber. Checking underneath it, she found a hidden, developing Mother Brain clone.

She shipped it off to the same address as Dark Samus, along with a Metroid she froze for assaulting her.

She reached the command bridge of the vessel in time to spot Melissa Bergman and Elcnax. Raising an eyebrow, she was about to speak when Melissa said, "Don't ask. Let's just take this creature first."

A volley of icy plasma bolts from Samus obliterated the creature's arms. While vulnerable, Elcnax became subject to a Metroid eating contest.

After several rounds of this, the crippled Elcnax floated slowly away. Instead of pursuing, Samus went to a nearby console and typed. A warning klaxon activated about the upcoming antimatter annihilation that was to follow, and Samus took off for her ship, freezing any SA-X's who happened to be in her way.

Melissa Bergman made her way to her own vessel, with the Metroids piling in behind her. Her ship followed Samus's as the Jug ship exploded like a miniaturized star.

Melissa piloted her ship to an undisclosed location, trying to make plans for the future. Meanwhile, Samus took to going wherever she fancied, trying to find a way to occupy her time, other than lonely space patrol.


	6. Aftermath

Ch. 6: Aftermath

 **Author's Note:** I hope any viewers realize I sometimes post multiple chapters on the same day, so they don't get confused with what's happening.

Again, please keep all reviews clean.

 **Disclaimer:** Metroid is the property of Nintendo, as is Kirby and Super Smash Bros. Cortana is the property of 343 studios, and JARVIS belongs to Disney.

Yes, there are some crossover elements, so some of the jokes might not be obvious.

* * *

Two days later…

Samus took a bite out of a turkey sandwich. She gave some bread crumbs to the Dachoras next to her, while the Etecoons enjoyed some fruit.

What, was there supposed to be something eventful?

The baby Dachora shinesparked into a nearby forest, leading to an afternoon long chase, which quickly turned into a game of a hide-and-seek with all of the animals.

Samus promptly put a new X-ray visor on her Christmas list.

* * *

Three days after that…

The Galactic Federation scientists found on Aether were charged with, among other things, trespassing.

U-mos alleviated there anxieties by allowing them to dust the newly cleared Sanctuary Temple as community service.

They were relieved, up until the point when they found out how large it was.

Torvus Bog grew slightly larger from their tears.

* * *

One week after that…

Disgruntled Galactic Federation conspirators sent a horde of 300 cloned Ridleys after Samus. Thinking in advance, they had placed computerized self-destruct devices in each clone as a contingency for if (when) their special forces had some obedience issues.

300 uses of the scan visor later…

When analysts noticed the freakishly huge orders of money for "failed munitions program," they did a little digging.

In the end, it wasn't Samus, Madeline Bergman, Anthony Higgs, Space Pirates, or even Melissa Bergman that took down the conspiracy.

It was a group of accountants, who would have been rewarded handsomely had the budget not gotten so tight after the incident.

* * *

One month after that…

Melissa Bergman stared at the computer screen in front of her for a few long minutes. The baby Metroids were in dormancy, after MB had told them a rather long story that she felt was interesting. Finally, she could start her next project.

Clearly she couldn't post a job offering that outright stated that she was looking for a villainous general, but Melissa did think one could be rather useful.

That's why her posting asked for an interstellar assistant with very specific details.

First, she described the characteristics. The applicant would need to have had experience with a gigantic eye-like object in its mouth-like object.

The applicant would have to be capable of firing ethereal fireballs, as well as teleporting minions into ideal locations.

Of course, the applicant would also have to be capable of teleporting and levitating, and disembodied floating hands were required.

Furthermore, the job would require rather specific experiences.

In particular, the applicant would have had to fight a participant of an inter-universal fighting tournament who was also involved in the destruction of a planet, wielded plasma and ice, and had defeated Metroids.

The applicant would also have to have experience with wrecked ships.

Confident that she could expect Phantoon some time in the near future, Melissa Bergman submitted the request form onto several intergalactic servers.

* * *

Two days later.

Melissa Bergman looked up from her table at the designated interview location. In walked a levitating alien with a blue hat and a scarf.

"Hi," the alien began, "I'm here for that job interview. My name is Magolor!"

* * *

Samus's sci-fi equivalent of a phone rang, and she picked it up, expecting some urgent request.

What she received, however, was a voice that exclaimed, "Hello from the children's company, This Knee! We heard you had experience with exotic wildlife, so we called to ask if you could detail some creatures for our next production. In particular, we heard that you've seen an adorable little birdie creature?"

Samus was fortunate to not have been eating, or she would have spewed the contents of her meal out. Instead, she hung up and asked Adam to change her phone number.

"That will be somewhat costly, given that your high profile contacts may wish for your new number, and the various administrative issues with changing a bounty hunter's access line."

"Relax, I'm a bounty hunter, so I can afford it, right?" Samus asked.

Adam responded with, "Actually, I think you work for free."

Samus paused for five seconds. Sighing deeply, she muttered, "How many missile tanks would I have to sell for a small fortune? I can't sell my power-ups, because I think their genetically linked to my suit now or something."

Adam asked, "Lady?"

Samus continued to herself, "I wonder if this is how my upgrades disappear between missions. Funding issues and all that. Maybe that's where my Metroid Prime 3 ship went too. I wonder, how much would a skeleton of Ridley be worth?"

Adam mustered a response, saying, "I don't think the Federation would appreciate such transactions."

Samus looked at the purple orb. "Couldn't you just hack into the network to change my phone number?"

Adam would have shook his head, but, well, he is a computer, so… Anyways, he exclaimed, "I don't think so. After all, the network has sophisticated defenses from that type of infiltration."

Samus muttered, "Why do Cortana and JARVIS get all the cool abilities? Seriously, if I had money, I would buy an Aurora Unit."

Adam blinked, then remarked, "You could apply for financial aid. Technically, you might be considered homeless, and you don't exactly have a reliable source of income…"

Samus held up her Super Smash invitation. "Technically," she emphasized the word, "I earn Smash coins after each battle, unless it was really horrible, like my opponent falling off the stage at the start."

Adam blinked again, and Samus remarked, "Don't you know what I'm talking about? I thought you broke the fourth wall in Fusion… unless that technically didn't happen…"

Adam continued to blink, leading Samus to conclude with, "Great, he's broken."


	7. Bonus Round: Sudden Death

Ch. 7 Bonus round (alternatively, sudden death)

 **Author's Note:** I hope viewers realize I sometimes post multiple chapters on the same day, so they don't get confused with what's happening in the plot. This chapter in particular is separate from the rest of the story.

Again, please keep all reviews clean.

 **Disclaimer:** Metroid is the property of Nintendo, as is Kirby and Super Smash Bros. Cortana is the property of 343 studios, and JARVIS belongs to Disney.

Yes, there are some crossover elements, so some of the jokes might not be obvious.

* * *

Mother Brain, Emperor Ing, SA-X, Dark Samus, Gorea, Ridley, Nightmare, Phantoon, and a Queen Metroid were teleported onto the B.S.L. station, somehow orbiting planet Phaaze.

A voice went, 3, 2-

Dark Samus blasted the SA-X with a phazon beam. Moments later, Mother Brain opened up with energy bursts on the Emperor Ing.

As the announcer went on a tirade about fair play, Gorea tried following Ridley with its blasts of energy, only to meet a face full of fireballs.

Phantoon's phantom eyes bounced off Nightmare's carapace, and the pair flew upwards away from the Queen Metroid in the already deteriorating Operations deck.

Tentacles slashed about as the Emperor Ing showcased his irritation. One Dark Echo was smashed into pieces, while the other assisted Dark Samus in her plasma beam combination.

Nightmare's tail began drawing in all sorts of unwanted projectiles, freezing over from the SA-X's shots. At this moment, Ridley blew a hot burst of flame into his face mask. Stunned as he was, the SA-X's super missiles blew apart his facemask, leading him to screech in a creepy tone of voice.

The Queen Metroid deployed her Baby Metroids from her back, forcing the other combatants to keep their distance. Several charged at Phantoon, only for the specter to teleport them towards Gorea. The telepathic shapeshifter began furiously battling the parasites as they tried to feast off the immense power they sensed within.

By now, the battle had turned into somewhat of a pattern. The SA-X went to battle the Queen Metroid, sensing it was its greatest threat. Ice beam shots swiftly incapacitated the Metroids, which were blown to bits by Super Missiles. Enraged, the Queen Metroid turned to its fire breath, scorching the SA-X. Plasma flew as the two engaged in a freaky show of parasitic might.

Mother Brain made use of her telepathic focus, bending Phantoon to her will. Ridley and Nightmare were also affected, joining her in an attempt to battle Dark Samus and the Emperor Ing.

Dark Samus's Dark Echoes joined her in an attempt to battle Nightmare and Mother Brain, even as the Emperor Ing began a confusing battle with Ridley and Phantoon. Dark energy lanced out at Ridley, who dodged in a nifty barrel roll, even as tentacles extended to meet the Rage Hands that were spawned.

Gorea teleported away from the Baby Metroids. Floating projectiles spawned from Gorea, only to be devoured by the creatures. Gorea teleported again, only to end up by the Queen Metroid. The Baby Metroids were caught in a Power Bomb explosion, and were swiftly disposed of by the SA-X as the Queen turned her attention to the floating creature approaching.

The Emperor Ing's core finally took enough damage from Ridley and Phantoon's plasma. He went into a chrysalis, releasing a cloud of purple gas all over the lower levels. The combatants that could fly did so, leaving Mother Brain and the Queen Metroid to cope.

Mother Brain began using her telepathy on the Queen Metroid, only to feel irritation as one of the Emperor's tentacles smacked her eye. A pulse of energy blew the offending object to smithereens, though the shell as of yet remained unscratched.

Dark Samus and Gorea began an aerial battle, though neither managed to seriously injure the other. Phazon pulsed through the empty space which Gorea teleported out of, and Dark Samus's Dark Echoes began preparing another barrage.

Nightmare abruptly raised the gravitational force, sending the combatants, sans the SA-X, back in the dark smog. The Emperor Ing's tentacles reacted to the surrounding targets, only to be demolished by the extreme forces. The chrysalis shattered, revealing the new form of the Emperor while simultaneously clearing away the smog.

Through several volleys of plasma, the SA-X had succeeded in freezing over Nightmare's tail. However, Nightmare retaliated with forming a gravitational event, succeeding in again thwarting the others' projectile assaults. Ridley anchored his claws and tail onto railing, even as the others similarly found better vantage points.

At this point, some of the combatants had been exhausted. Dark Samus finished off Ridley even as Gorea succeeded in forcing Phantoon to explode. The SA-X dispatched Nightmare when the gravity attack ended and turned to face the Queen Metroid.

However, Dark Samus had other ideas. She lanced the SA-X with a beam of plasma, prompting the two doppelgangers to do battle above. Screwattack met Phazon shield as the two unleashed their formidable arsenals.

Meanwhile, the three grounded combatants fought it out. Mother Brain was pummeled by a volley of transdimensional blasts, leading her to use the laser brain attack against her two opponents. It stunned the Emperor Ing, but the Queen Metroid was mostly unfazed, even as she retaliated with a stream of vibrant plasma.

Above them, the SA-X fired a pulse of blue plasma. Dark Samus slid smoothly away and retaliated with a volley of rapid-fire Phazon power beam shots, which barely phased the orange copy. The subsequent Phazon-coated smash Dark Samus performed into the SA-X, however, produced some more results.

It was at this point that Gorea chose to make a reappearance. A withering beam of energy knocked both copies down, though the seeking orbs that followed were blocked by the duo's energy shields of Phazon tendrils and screwattack. The SA-X landed on ground level even as the two floating powerhouses went for each other, trying to land a significant blow.

A swarm of nightbarbs from the Emperor Ing distracted Mother Brain, even while he blasted the Queen Metroid with a beam of dark energy. The chilling effects angered the beast, but its hide staved off most of the damage. It lunged forward, intent on biting into the Emperor, when the SA-X fell directly into its mouth.

One power bomb later…

The SA-X, injured by the energy drain, screwattacked through the Emperor Ing's knee joints, bringing him down for the count. By then, however, a plasma blast from Mother Brain blasted apart its physical form. The following laser brain attack dispatched the giant Hornoad phase, and some more concussive blasts rendered the Core-X's shell dissolved.

With its amorphous essence exposed, the SA-X soared toward Mother Brain, intent on infection. Before such a process could begin, however, Dark Samus was blasted into the parasite by Gorea, absorbing it on touch. The new ice beam functionality was granted to Dark Samus as well, only to prove mostly ineffective against the levitating entity which it faced.

Mother Brain turned its telepathic powers on the floating duo. Dark Samus's Phazon infused presence forced Mother Brain to withdraw, but with Gorea…

Well, the fellow telepath certainly recognized the intrusion. With a new target in mind, Gorea blasted Mother Brain repeatedly. Dark Samus's Phazon blasts were doing minimal damage to the floating seal sphere, allowing the floating creature to finish off the giant organism. As Mother Brain turned to ash, however, the facility's intercom blared out, "Propulsion sequence activated. 3 minutes until impact with destination: planet Phaaze." Even in disintegration, Mother Brain's mastery over machines played havoc with her foes.

Dark Samus tried to make her way out, only to be interrupted by Gorea teleporting in front of her. The two exchanged energy blasts, before Dark Samus fused with her Dark Echoes and tried to flee in the super powered state.

2:45

As Dark Samus smashed through an observation port leading to the reaches of space, several floating orbs phased through the walls of the Space Station to detonate on her and the Dark Echoes. Gorea teleported outside, blasting Dark Samus into the falling station while following.

2:07

A giant pillar of Phazon formed over Gorea and fell, smashing it into the station's stony exterior. Gorea teleported nearby, tearing through the Dark Echoes with an energy beam, only to meet Dark Samus's energy shockwave attack. It glanced off Gorea, however, the Phazon energy failing to inflict significant damage.

1:48

Dark Samus however behind her newer Phazon pillars, only to somersault away as Gorea reduced them to pieces. Dark Samus cartwheeled again, releasing new Dark Echoes. The trio charged forward in super speed dashes, though Gorea used its teleportation evasively again.

1:16

The Phazon doppelganger of Samus took note of the approaching planet and chuckled. Though the friction from entering the atmosphere was starting to produce prodigious amounts of heat, neither combatant particularly cared. Dark Samus leaped up and fired a stream of plasma, even as Gorea did the same. Neither beam did much, but the two didn't mind, both feeling they had the upper hand in the engagement.

0:47

Dark Samus and her own doppelgangers began firing orbs of Phazon at the floating creature before them. Gorea's own explosive projectiles met them midair, resulting in a rather flashy demonstration of power, as bursts of energy popped in the descent.

0:32

Gorea teleported directly behind Dark Samus before proceeding to blast her. Dark Samus turned slowly, then retaliated with a Phazon shot to the Seal Sphere. Gorea partially recoiled, only for the Dark Echoes to begin their own assaults.

0:15

Dark Samus called down more Phazon pillars, pushing Gorea to the station's surface. They pinned it in place, and as the planet's surface approached, Dark Samus chuckled once more. She utilized her own manipulation of space and teleported far away to a distant part of Phaaze.

Gorea teleported just outdie the pillars.

0:03

Dark Samus watched from about a continent's distance away as the station collided. Sure, there would be some damage, but Phaaze could recover…

A flash.

Apparently, the Galactic Federation didn't think a planet busting bomb was overkill for destroying a space station. Go figure.

So…Phantoon wins?

It's more like the rest of the Metroid Universe wins, at least until something terrible manifests in a hopefully soon sequel.

Fin.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

This story was a nice practice for me, and I had fun writing it. I hope to compose a longer, more serious Metroid story, though as finals approach, that might be postponed.

Anyways, as part of the story planning, I made a list of what I consider the top 21 strongest Metroid characters, which helped with who I should include (not all of them made an appearance, though).

It goes: Samus, Dark Samus, Gorea, SA-X (and X-parasites in general), planet Phaaze/Phazon as a whole, Mother Brain, Emperor Ing, U-mos, Phantoon, Ridley, Queen Metroid, Gandrayda, the Baby Metroid, Helios, Melissa Bergman, Ghor, Omega Metroid, Mogenar, Nightmare, Quadraxis, and Rundas.

Now that I think about it, very few actually made it into the story. Anyways, I think anyone aside from Samus on the list who isn't larger than Ridley, has a personality, and isn't dead could be Super Smash.

Which leaves U-mos.

Now I see why there aren't very many Metroid characters in Smash.


End file.
